Internet of Things: What Will the Future Bring?

During the vibrant 24-hour Sogeti Executive Summit 2013 the following four main questions were addressed regarding the ongoing penetration and adoption of the Internet of Things:

1. Have we passed the tipping point?
2. How is the relation between humans and things changing?
3. How will it transform business?
4. What will the future bring?

Two speakers were lined up who looked at the final question from a critical and imaginative angle: Jaron Lanier from Microsoft Research and David Rose from MIT Media Lab. In his recent book Who Ownes the Future? Mr. Lanier for various reasons argues against worshipping Big Data. It is no substitute for wisdom, and the windows of Big Data opportunities are less numerous and very easy to exploit by various parties. This is part of the process of efficiency, automation, and competition hollowing out one industry after another. The Google and Facebook business model cannot be sustained because everything you could possibly sell is going away. In his forthcoming book Enchanted Objects. Design, Human Desire and the Internet of Things, Mr. Rose dismisses the World of Screens, the World of Prosthetics and the Social Robot World. He believes we are now standing at the precipice of the next transformative development: the Internet of Things. Soon, connected technology will be embedded in hundreds of everyday objects we already care about and know how to use – our cars, cubicles, wallets, watches, umbrellas, even our trash cans – objects that will respond to our needs, come to know us, and even learn to think ahead on our behalf. Rose calls these devices Enchanted Objects. In his concluding remarks at the end of the Sogeti Executive Summit 2013, Mr. Pierre Hessler stressed the following three things for organizations not to forget: Don’t Forget the Basics: Assess your capabilities; keep your Things efforts customer-centric; and use your ‘burning platform’ to accelerate the transformation. If you don’t have one, create one. Don’t Forget the Context: Think of Things as a digital whole; make your customers, partners and employees progress. Don’t Forget to Differentiate: Given there is a tipping point, everyone will follow the same strategy, so differentiate! Enchant differently, and look at both products and services.